62] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1816. 



After a warm debate on the 

 subject, the House divided, when 

 the amendment was negatived by 

 108 against 66. 



Mr. Ponsonby next moved, that 

 the clause rendering the vice- 

 treasurer eligible to parliament 

 should l)e left out. This amend- 

 ment was also rejected by 107 

 votes against 57- 



The report of the bill being- 

 brought up on the 17th, on the 

 question, that tiic blank for the 

 vice-treasurer's salary be filled uj) 

 with the words 3, 5001. Mr. Pon- 

 sonby said, that he should not 

 depart from what he had before 

 moved : and repeated his motion, 

 that 2,0001. be inserted. The 

 division gave a remarkable proof 

 of the effect of pei'sisting to bring- 

 before the public eye, a measure 

 against which there are objec- 

 tions which it is diilicult to ob- 

 viate; for Mr. Ponsonby's amend- 

 ment was carried liy 100 to 98. 

 The majority, though so incon- 

 siderable, was received with loud 

 and long cheering. 



On the motion, June 20th, that 

 the bill be read a third time, Mr . 

 Bankes objected to the creation of 

 a new sinecure office, by which 

 the public were to j)ay the charge 

 of both principal and dejjuty ; 

 and he moved the insertion of 

 the words, " other than the de- 

 puty aforesaid," the effect of 

 which would be to throw the 

 payment of the deputy upon the 

 principal. It was remarked on 

 the other side, that this affected 

 the question oT the vice-trea- 

 surer's sitting in parliament, since 

 now that his salary was reduced 

 to 2,000l., it was not to be sup- 

 posed, that any one would pay a 

 deputy out of it, and do his duty 

 in parliament. 



The House dividing, the amend- 

 ment was rejected by 149 against 

 111. The bill was then read and 

 passed. 



The passage of this bill through 

 the House of Lords afforded no- 

 thing that it is material to 

 record. 



The subject of the silver cur- 

 rency of this kingdom was brought 

 before parliament on May 3d, by 

 a petition presented to the House 

 of Commons, by Mr. Grenfcll, 

 from certain traders in the pa- 

 rishes of bhoreditch, Spital-fields, 

 and the vicinity, praying for a 

 new coinage. Its substance was 

 to state the great inconvenience 

 and embarrassment which they 

 had long been suffering from the 

 imperfect state of the silver c\ir- 

 rency, especially the shillings and 

 sixpences, of which very few ap- 

 peared to have been the legal 

 coin of the realm, but bore the 

 mark of counterfeits ; to which 

 had lately been added a vast in- 

 flux of French coin, the value of 

 which was more than 20 per 

 cent, below that of the coins for 

 which they ])assed, yet of more 

 intrinsic value than that of the 

 counterfeits above-mentioned; the 

 consequence of which substitution 

 must eventually be highly inju- 

 rious to mechanics and trades- 

 men residing in manufacturing 

 districts. 



Tlie hon. gentleman in offering 

 this petition, made some obser- 

 vations on the present silver cur- 

 rency ; in reply to which, Mr. 

 Wellesley Pole acknowledged their 

 force, and that the petitioners 

 had just cause of complaint, and 

 said, that the subject was now 

 under consideration by his Ma- 

 jesty's ministers. 



On May 28th^ a message from 



the 



